Why SOPA Matters to Me

I’m sad to hear that Warner Brothers supports SOPA. in 2004 I started a little fansite called BlueTights. The focus on was featuring constructive conversations about the in-development-hell Superman movie to better communicate with Warner Brothers about what Superman fans wanted from the film instead of just complaining about the production company ruining everything.

That fan site grew immensely popular, largely on the backs of creative youtubers who were compiling mashup Superman trailers that featured footage from various films. From there we grew into a larger Superman resource that openly supported Warner’s efforts to get a great Superman movie made. Warner Brothers ultimately decided to partner with us, a fan site that featured massive amounts of content that was in the most technical sense a copyright violation, to build better bridges between fans and the studio.

From there, I worked hard to turn a very successful community endeavor into a career
as an online Community Manager and I’ve gone on to support and represent some of the biggest and best brands in the game industry. I owe my livelihood to starting a fan site. A fan site covered in copyrighted content, but respectful to the original creators of that content.

I started a fan site from a desk in the dining room of my 600 square foot apartment 8 years ago. It led me to Los Angeles. It led me to the Videogame industry. It led me to my wife and kids. It led me to the top of the corporate side of my industry and into the most amazing independent side of my industry. And I can’t even begin to imagine where it will lead my children.

Under SOPA’s influence, I could go to jail instead.

Please join in the fight against SOPA and PIPA by writing to your representatives and insisting that they find a better way to protect copyrighted content.